LITTLE ROCK — The 85th annual Academy Awards ceremony will be held Sunday night. As is our custom, we’ve assembled a panel of astute Oscar watchers (and one clueless movie critic) to guess what will win what. And while we encourage you to play along at home, we must remind you that gambling is prohibited and flash photography is dangerous to our performers. And I’ve been asked by the panel to remind you that these choices are their best guesses as to who will win - not who should.
This year’s panel comprises Levi Agee (LA), soon-to-be father of more than just his weekly Screengems column; Sam Blair (SB), retired Central High School college counselor, our resident armchair critic and a frequent contributor to our Blood, Dirt & Angels blog; Jennifer Boulden (JB), social media director for Aristotle Inc., who has realized, after more than a decade of following the Academy Awards races much too closely, the only thing she consistently gets right is baking her Oscar-shaped cookies for the telecast; Danny-Joe Crofford (DJC), the marketing and events director of War Memorial Stadium; Karen Martin (KM), MovieStyle founder and stakeholder in our weekly Home movies column; myself (PM); Jonathan Nettles (JN), KHTV’s perpetually tardy on-air film critic; our copy-desk chief and invaluable font of cinematic history, Joe Riddle (Joe); Blake Rutherford (BR), public servant, former Moviegoer blogger, and founder of Movies in the Park; Jay Russell (JR), formerly of North Little Rock, director of motion pictures (My Dog Skip, The Water Horse) and keeper of secrets; and the new kids, Regina Scruggs, program Director (and occasional film critic) at UALR Public Radio (KUAR FM 89, and KLRE Classical 90.5) and Lance Turner (LT), online editor, ArkansasBusiness.com.
BEST ACTOR
The nominees are: Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook; Hugh Jackman, Les Miserables; Daniel Day Lewis, Lincoln; Joaquin Phoenix, The Master; Denzel Washington, Flight.
Our panel says: LA: Day Lewis SB: Day Lewis JB: Day Lewis DJC: Day Lewis KM: Day Lewis PM: Phoenix JN: Day Lewis Joe: Day Lewis BR: Day Lewis JR: Day Lewis RS: Day Lewis LT: Day Lewis
Comments: SB: “Hugh Jackman’s a distant second.”
BEST ACTRESS
The nominees are: Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty; Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook; Emmanuelle Riva, Amour; Quvenzhane Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild; Naomi Watts, The Impossible.
Our panel says: LA: Lawrence SB: Lawrence JB: Lawrence DJC: Lawrence KM: Wallis PM: Riva JN: Chastain Joe: Chastain BR: Lawrence JN: Chastain RS: Lawrence JR: Riva LT: Chastain
Comments: JB: “I’ll go with conventional wisdom and say Jennifer Lawrence, though I’d like to see any of the others take it. I’d say Emmanuelle Riva has the best chance of taking it from her.”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
The nominees are: Alan Arkin, Argo; Robert De Niro, Silver Linings Playbook; Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master; Tommy Lee Jones, Lincoln; Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained.
Our panel says: LA: Waltz SB: De Niro JB: Jones DJC: De Niro KM: Arkin PM: Hoffman JN: Jones Joe: Waltz BR: De Niro JR: Jones RS: Jones LT: Hoffman
Comments: JB: “The biggest tossup.” DJC: “Alan Arkin should win.”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
The nominees are: Amy Adams, The Master; Sally Field, Lincoln; Anne Hathaway, Les Miserables; Helen Hunt, The Sessions; Jacki Weaver, Silver Linings Playbook.
Our panel says: LA: Hathaway SB: Hathaway JB: Hathaway DJC: Hathaway KM: Adams PM: Adams JN: Hathaway Joe: Hathaway BR: Hathaway JR: Hathaway RS: Hathaway LT: Hathaway
BEST DIRECTOR
The nominees are: Michael Haneke, Amour; Ang Lee, Life of Pi; David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook; Steven Spielberg, Lincoln; Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild.
Our panel says: LA: Lee SB: Spielberg JB: Russell DJC: Russell KM: Haneke PM: Spielberg JN: Spielberg Joe: Spielberg BR: Spielberg JR: Spielberg RS: Spielberg LT: Spielberg
Comments: SB: “Should win: Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty.” DJC: “None of the nominees should win, because the Best Director didn’t get nominated.” Joe: “Spielberg … only because the Academy failed to nominate Ben Affleck and Kathryn Bigelow.” RS: “Ang Lee might pull off an upset, but … I don’t think so.”
BEST PICTURE
The nominees are: Amour; Argo; Beasts of the Southern Wild; Django Unchained; Les Miserables; Life of Pi; Lincoln; Silver Linings Playbook; Zero Dark Thirty
Our panel says: LA: Argo SB: Argo JB: Argo DJC: Zero Dark Thirty KM: Amour PM: Amour JN: Argo Joe: Lincoln BR: Argo JR: Argo RS: Argo LT: Lincoln
Comments: PM: “Amour probably won’t win, but I do believe it has an outside chance. If I’m going to separate myself from the pack I have to take a flier.”
BEST ANIMATED PICTURE
The nominees are: Brave; Frankenweenie; Paranorman; The Pirates! Band of Misfits; Wreck-It Ralph
Our panel says: LA: Brave SB: Wreck-It Ralph JB: Brave DJC: Brave KM: Brave PM: Frankenweenie JN: Frankenweenie Joe: Wreck-It Ralph BR: Wreck-It Ralph JR: Brave RS: Frankenweenie LT: Brave
Comments: SB: “No idea; didn’t see any of them and probably won’t.” JB: “When in doubt, vote Pixar.” DJC: “Wreck-It Ralph should win.”
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE PICTURE
The nominees are: Amour; A Royal Affair; Kon-Tiki; No; War Witch.
Our panel says: LA: Amour SB: Amour JB: Amour DJC: Amour KM: Amour PM:Amour JN: Amour Joe: Amour BR: Amour JR: Amour RS: Amour LT: Amour
PM: “Against all logic, I have a feeling A Royal Affair could win.”
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
The nominees are: Amour; Django Unchained; Flight; Moonrise Kingdom; Zero Dark Thirty.
Our panel says: LA: Zero Dark Thirty SB: Amour JB: Amour DJC: Django Unchained KM: Moonrise Kingdom PM: Zero Dark Thirty JN: Django Unchained Joe: Django Unchained BR: Amour JR: Moonrise Kingdom RS: Django Unchained LT: Django Unchained
Comments: LT: “Tarantino’s scripts are masterworks in their own right, Django included.”
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The nominees are: Argo; Beasts of the Southern Wild; Life of Pi; Lincoln; Silver Linings Playbook.
Our panel says: LA: Beasts of the Southern Wild SB: Lincoln JB: Lincoln DJC: Argo KM: Lincoln PM: Beasts of the Southern Wild JN: Argo Joe: Lincoln BR: Lincoln JR: Lincoln RS: Argo LT: Silver Linings Playbook
Comments: RS: “A month back I would have said Lincoln, but that momentum thing again …”
MovieStyle, Pages 31 on 02/22/2013